


And Your Enemies Closer

by Vanyel



Category: Team Fortress 2
Genre: AU, Demon AU, I'm never going to finish this am i, M/M, and lost steam, but i'm keeping it as is for uploading purposes, god some of this is so clunky, had the notes all written out, so enjoy old bad van writing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-17
Updated: 2016-05-17
Packaged: 2018-06-09 01:39:10
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,460
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6883801
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vanyel/pseuds/Vanyel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Based on sfheibai's Demon Helmet Party AU.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Fallen Demon

Jane sighed contentedly; another long day coming to a close. The last guests of the wedding had finally stumbled their way out the door, the rain pattered softly against the stained glass, and Jane was finally alone in the old church. As he swept the flower petals out of the pews, he reflected on how nice it was some days, to be just a priest instead of a soldier. It was very relaxing, and Jane’s mind drifted back to the smiling faces of his flock during that morning’s sermon. Such peace and joy; it reminded him of why he had taken up the oath in the first place, to serve and protect these people.

A loud thump from outside the church broke Jane out of his reverie. The rain had grown harsher suddenly, and peals of thunder rumbled across the sky. Something was wrong. He set down the broom, and went to open the door.

Dell lay at his feet, half-demon and nearly battered beyond recognition. There was a gaping hole in the side of his stomach, an alarming pool of blood flowed around him into the rain, and his right hand, the source of most of his demonic power, was completely severed. He looked up at Jane, extending the bleeding stump out towards him as if reaching for him.

“H-h-help me…Jane…” Dell’s voice was weak and wheezy, and Jane watched his eyes roll back as he flopped onto the wooden steps, consciousness gone. He quickly bent down, lifting the smaller man into his arms, and began to carry him into the church. As he crossed the threshold, Dell whimpered in pain, and Jane stopped. Of course - in his weakened state, Dell’s body couldn’t handle the holy aura of the church grounds. He backed out of the doorway, and ran home carrying the weakened demon in his arms. The rain pelted them both, soaking them to the bone, and the wind nearly blew Jane off his feet a few times, but he kept a tight grip on the body slowly leaking blood onto him and pushed through.

Jane never knew why Dell constantly hung around him. They were a demon and a holy warrior; they shouldn’t get along. Yet Dell was always there, taunting and torturing him. As he carried him through his own doorway and laid him gently on the kitchen table, Jane took a moment to look over the fallen demon. The only evidence of his inhumanity was the small patch of red skin present on his upper right arm. He should finish him off, right now, never have to deal with him again. He went and got his first aid kit, spreading it out on the table next to Dell.

Dell woke all at once, quickly taking in his surroundings. Hard wood under his back , a simple white ceiling; Jane’s house. He felt a hand holding his, and turned his head. Jane sat in the chair next to him, fast asleep, hands still clasped on Dell’s. Bandages all over him-most of his wounds healed underneath, but he never would’ve survived long enough for that on his own. He pulled himself into a sitting position, and the motion jarred Jane awake. The silence stretched as they stared at each other, growing awkward. Then Dell spoke up.

“Thanks fer the help, hon,” he chuckled, “but ain’t it against your nature to patch someone like me up?” He raised an eyebrow knowingly. Jane sputtered, trying to recover. “Yeah, well, the next time you get your arm chopped off, go ask one of your demon friends to help.” Dell simply chuckled again.

“Heh, couldn’ quite do that this time, pardner. Was a ‘demon friend’ o’ mine trying to move in over my territory. Specifically, yer church, Jane.” He grinned. “Y’all should be thankin’ me, though the bandages’ll be enough fer me.”

Jane blinked. “You…were protecting my church? Why?”

“Cuz I love ya, Jane. You may be thick-headed ‘bout some things, but I love you.” The words froze Jane momentarily in his seat. He then stood up quickly, pointing at the door. “Out. Now,” he barked, not even looking at the…monster that was saying such things to him. He’s a demon, he told himself, the enemy.

Dell acquiesced, rolling off the table and heading towards the door. He paused, and turned back. “You do remember that us demons can’t lie in half-form, dontcha?”

“Out!”

Shrugging, Dell opened the door, and stepped out. He gave one last nod to Jane before shifting, spreading his wings and flying off into the rain.


	2. Lies and Pride

“How many times do I have to tell yeh? He’s just trying to mess with yer head!” The older man threw up his hands in exasperation, sitting heavily back into his chair. “Tha’ demon knows exactly how ta rattle yeh, make ye drop yer guard so that the next time he shows up ye’re an easy mark.” He shook his head, his one golden eye glaring accusingly at the priest. “Ye’re goin’ soft, lad.”

Jane sighed. “But he was in half-form, Tavish. You and I both know that half-forms are bound to the truth.” He rubbed his temple, trying to figure out what Dell had to gain from that admission. He’d come to the old Degroot house looking for answers, hoping that the ex-priest’s experience with demons might lead him to some explanation, but all he’d gotten so far was another lecture. Tavish never liked how close Dell and Jane had seemed to get, mistrusting the demon’s reticence to attack even while remaining in constant contact with his protege, and any visit from Jane always resulted in grave warnings to not let his guard down. “What if he really meant it?”

Tavish snorted in disbelief. “And what if me eye grew back, jumped outta its socket, and did a jig on the table? He’s a bloodeh DEMON, Jane. Ah don’ know how he said wha’ he did, but he don’t love you. ‘M not even sure they’re capable of lovin’ anythin’ other than power an’ destruction.” He gestured to the dust book on the table between them. “T’get back to yer other question, according to th’texts, Dell didn’t start showin’ up around here until about fifty years ago, so it’s very possible the attack was some other demon trying to take back their old territory.”

“Really? Who was there before him?” Jane leaned forward, curious. Dell had some of the greatest raw demonic power he’d ever seen, and he was interested to find out what kind of demon could come so close to killing him.

Tavish frowned. “Tha’s the thing, lad,” he grumbled, flipping through one of the books and dropping it back onto the table with a sigh. “None a’ these books even mention a wee bit of a power struggle around here, which is the onleh way we ever get ta know who they are, and they go back fer 500 years! Wha’eva kind a’ demon we’re dealin’ with here, it’s ancient, an’ it’s crafty; nae even gettin’ challenged means takin’ out the nearby hotheads afore they can even think of goin’ after yeh.”

Grunting, Jane rubbed the back of his neck, slightly confused. “But you said there was no power struggle. So how does Dell get into this area?”

“Maybe it were some sort o’ gift,” Tavish shrugged. “Keepin’ a church in yer domain’s a pretty big status symbol among demonic circles, especially one that cleans out the riffraff as well as yeh do.”

A thought hit Jane with all the force of a truck, and he froze, hand half-lifted away from his neck. His eyes widened, and he slumped forward, winded from the force of the realization. “That’s what he meant.” His voice was uncharacteristically weak. “That’s how Dell got around the truth binding. He doesn’t love me; he loves the status he gets from keeping me under his watch. That’s why he protected the church, to keep his pride.” Jane’s blood felt like ice in his veins. Tavish was right. Dell didn’t love him. He couldn’t.

Standing and placing the books back on the shelves, the ex-priest laid a heavy hand on his shoulder, sighing. “Ah hate to say it, but tha’ sounds jus’ about right. Ah’m sorreh ye feel so broken up about wha’ he said to yeh, but tha’s their way. They’re demons, Jane. They have no soul. Come on, yeh should probably be headin’ on home now.”

Jane stood, nodding mechanically, and bid farewell to his mentor. From his doorstep, Tavish called after him, “An’ stay away from Dell; wha’eva he’s gotten himself mixed up in is bad news if yeh go meddlin’ in it!” Jane snorted softly. That was fine. He wasn’t sure he wanted to see Dell ever again.


End file.
